In just a few weeks, the Victoria Forum kicks off in beautiful Victoria, BC, August 25 to 27^th. Think of it as a mini-Davos with fewer limousines and more Birkenstocks. At Victoria Forum 2024, the best and brightest minds in Impact Investing and Social Innovation will assemble and also be online to discuss how to solve many of the most complex issues of our time. We will ensure that the solutions are transparent, respect community values and human rights, and provide positive impacts for neighbourhoods and the environment.

It may sound like a stretch, but thanks to sponsors like the University of Victoria and the Senate of Canada, the Victoria Forum has great potential to drive real global change.

Big problems, Smart solutions

The most difficult problems plaguing humanity like war, human displacement, climate change and indigenous reconciliation require a significant investment of time and money to address. The war in Ukraine is no different; it will require decades of work and billions, perhaps trillions, of dollars to rebuild the brave nation and ensure victims receive proper restitution.

I’m honoured to participate and help organise a special session of this year’s Victoria Forum on August 27^th entitled Innovative Finance for Regenerative Reconstruction after Conflict. Wewill present and discuss the development of a social bond instrument, and how outcomes-based investing could be used to finance reconstruction of communities destroyed by war. This model has great applicability to Ukraine, Gaza and elsewhere.

The session will involve a 90-minute panel discussion moderated by MP Ryan Turnbull, with such luminary leaders like Senator Ratna Omidvar, the Honourable Lloyd Axworthy, Louise Savell and Peter Nicholas from Social Impact UK, and myself. We’ll discuss the current state of the war and recovery efforts focusing on how to ensure the rebuilding of Ukraine is done in a sustainable and transparent manner with local communities and citizens playing key roles.

Real impact

The August 27^th discussion will be followed by a 3 to 6-month working group where experts from around the world get together according to specialised topic areas like Sustainable Urban Planning, Community Engagement, Financing the Recovery, and the Role of Technology in Recovery. The goal is to develop a comprehensive, sustainable roadmap for Ukraine’s recovery and how innovative financial instruments and impact investing can be used to finance positive outcomes, while ensuring Russia pay for the damage it has wrought.

As discussed in my last blog, Money Troubles, lots of money has been promised for the recovery of Ukraine, but very little has actually been spent. Our hope is that a sustainable roadmap combined with a way to finance the recovery that ties the funding to impactful outcomes could act as a proxy for how Development Finance Institutions evaluate investment opportunities in Ukraine. This would allow the money to start flowing to projects in Ukraine that are guaranteed to be transparent, impactful and respectful of the people who have suffered so much.

If you’re concerned about the most important issues plaguing our times and want to know how you can make a real impact, please join me at the 2024 Victoria Forum by registering HERE.

Ukraine has suffered immeasurably at the hands of Russia over the past decade while defending our democracies and freedoms. If smart people put their minds together and share bright ideas to build Ukraine back better, the terrible suffering of the Ukrainian people could end much sooner than later.

Slava Ukraini!  Heroaim Slava!